For years Santa Clara native Anthony Becker sought to have a say in the direction of the South Bay city. He ran unsuccessfully five years ago for a City Council seat then came up short in his 2018 mayoral bid.
Undaunted, Becker landed a seat on the city's planning commission and used that perch to mount a winning bid for council last year.
His victory made him the first gay councilman in Santa Clara and only the second LGBTQ person to serve on the City Council. (Jamie McLeod-Skinner, a lesbian elected in 2004, was the first and served two four-year terms.) Seven months into his first term Becker is still adjusting to his new role, going from making suggestions as a planning commissioner on various development projects proposed for the city